“From what I’ve heard, there’s something brewing. It’s a fresh start. It’s a new start,” Head Coach Bradley Carnell said in his opening message to the team at the commencement of preseason in Marbella, Spain.
That was back in January. 34 Major League Soccer regular season matchdays later, that ‘fresh start’ evolved into a revival -- one that earned Carnell both the Supporters’ Shield and Major League Soccer Sigi Schmid Coach of the Year honors in his debut season in Philly.
Guided by Carnell in his first year as the team’s leader, 2025 marked the beginning of a refreshed era of Philadelphia Union soccer. The 48-year-old South African joined the club in January, inheriting a team that had previously finished 23rd overall in league standings and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2017. At the helm, Carnell steered the Boys in Blue as they coursed through one of their most successful campaigns to date, securing a regular season club-best of 20 wins, 14 clean sheets, and the second Supporters’ Shield lift at home in club history.
Each week, the team earned respect and recognition across American soccer, while internally, Carnell and his staff dilligently worked to establish a signature identity, carry out a team-first mentality, and remain steadfast in the club’s longstanding commitment to development. Carnell galvanized a group of veteran leaders, new international additions, developmental prospects, and promising Homegrown talent into a collective belief in the club’s project and each other, and fom three straight wins to open the season, to a nine-game unbeaten month of May across all competitions, 16 unbeaten matches at Subaru Park, and many moments in between, it showed, both on the pitch and in the locker room.
“You could see it from day one when he took over in January, he was making us believe that we could do something this year,” team captain and Best XI honoree Jakob Glesnes said.
“He was getting the group talked into that, and we can see it today…I don't think there were many people that were expecting us to be here at the end of the season, and that's a huge, huge honor for him, and also for his team. They have been fantastic over the whole year, and to get the group that we have now, with a lot of young guys, to dig into this, it's huge, and it's so fun to be a part of it.”
During the regular season, Carnell and his staff crafted 29 unique starting lineups using 25 different players, building trust within the group while capitalizing on what longtime team captain Alejandro Bedoya called the 'deepest' team the club has had. For six of Carnell’s starters, 2025 was their first season on the Major League Soccer stage.
On the attacking end, 18 Union players hit the back of the net and 15 recorded at least one assist, contributing to the 57-goal season, while the team’s defense established itself as the best in all of major league soccer with 14 clean sheets, 35 goals against, and a tied-for-league-low total of 349 shots against.
Off the pitch, Carnell and his staff focused on camaraderie, often surprising the group with team-bonding activities like go-karting, escape rooms, team barbecues, and inspiring conversations with veterans. His commitment to culture permeated through the team from top down, creating special bonds that many of his players have attributed their team's success to.
“How he turned around everything this year is just big. It's not just him, it's the whole training staff, the whole coaching staff who stepped in a big way. Mitch [Hildebrandt], Frank [Leicht], [Sean] Rooney, Jay [Cooney], Phil Wheddon, everybody around there. I think it's just how they handled everything, how they do training sessions, how well they prepare us every week,” Kai Wagner said.
“It's just something really special, and it makes a lot of people really happy. The people who are in this team and around the team…everybody's excited about what's ahead. The award is well-deserved this year, and I'm really happy for him.”
Over the course of the season, the togetherness off the field and Carnell's high-pressing, energetic, and brave game model on the field blended into one identity, and it’s pushed the team to where they currently sit -- awaiting an semifinal playoff match at Subaru Park. While Coach of the Year is a revered honor, it’s one that Carnell will look back on after the season, which he and his team hopes concludes with another trophy in hand.
